Prince Harry blames mobile phones for mental health issues

The 32-year-old royal – who has been campaigning for mental health awareness for over a year now with his brother Prince William and sister-in-law Duchess Catherine – believes everyone would be more “more effective and efficient” if they took more time to simply think instead of feeling the urge to check their electronic devices so much.

Speaking at a panel event called ‘Encouraging Happy Young Minds’ in Leeds, Yorkshire, he said: “I cannot tell you how pleased William, Catherine and I are that the dial seems to have shifted and that there is now greater understanding, compassion and kindness for anyone who opens up about their struggles.

“But let’s not kid ourselves that the job is done – there is much much more that we can do at every level to make conversations about mental health as commonplace as those about physical health.

“For example, we need to better equip our young people with the tools they need to cope with this increasingly complex and fast moving world we live in.

“I read recently that young people check their phones at least 150 times per day – I’m sure we could all be more effective and efficient if we took a moment to process our thoughts rather than rushing from one thing to the next.”

Meanwhile, in April, Prince Harry admitted to having endured two years of “total chaos” following the death of his mother, Princess Diana, in 1997

The royal confessed he only began to address his grief when he was 28, admitting that he previously felt on “the verge of punching someone” because of his heartache.

He shared: “I can safely say that losing my mum at the age of 12, and therefore shutting down all of my emotions for the last 20 years, has had a quite serious effect on not only my personal life but my work as well.

“I have probably been very close to a complete breakdown on numerous occasions when all sorts of grief and sort of lies and misconceptions and everything are coming to you from every angle.”

When asked if he’s ever seen a psychologist to share his troubles, the prince said: “I’ve done that a couple of times, more than a couple of times, but it’s great.”